Montgomery County honored the most-decorated woman Olympian in history, designating Thursday Katie Ledecky Day and naming a street after her near her alma mater, Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart in Bethesda.
Nine-time Olympic gold medalist Katie Ledecky returned to her old stomping grounds, where she perfected her craft with the support of classmates, school staff and the community.
“It’s been great; it’s been easy,” her mother said with a chuckle. “She’s very independent and she takes good care of herself.”
After years of breaking world records and winning championships, Ledecky added to her list of superlatives.
“Hereby recognize Oct. 17, 2024, as Katie Ledecky Day, presented on the 17th day of October in the year 2024,” County Executive Marc Elrich proclaimed.
“It makes me feel good to know that everyone here was cheering me on,” Ledecky said.
“I got so much out of this place – from Stone Ridge, from Little Flower, from MCSL (Montgomery County Swim League) swimming, from club swimming,” she said.
Furthermore, just off Stone Ridge’s campus, a few new signs read “Katie Ledecky Lane.”
“It’s pretty neat to have a street named after me, and yeah, hopefully, anyone that drives by it will think of the work that I put in,” Ledecky said.
The school’s swim team certainly is inspired.
“It’s really cool to see someone from this school that you go to and knowing, like, how far she’s, like, become and how good of a swimmer she is,” one team member said.
“Watching her get so far ahead and, like, swimming that fast is really inspiring,” another said.
